Anchor My Faith

You Brood of Vipers!

Scripture: Matthew 12:33-37

In the previous lesson we covered the unpardonable sin which was blasphemy against the Spirit. In this lesson we will look at the relationship between the heart and the mouth.

^{Mt 12:33} “Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad, for the tree is known by its fruit. ³⁴ You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. ³⁵ The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil.”

The scribes attempt to label Jesus a blasphemer is itself blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. Their wicked words prompt Jesus to indicate where those words come from and using a metaphor of a tree and its fruit he begins to explain. Jesus describes two kinds of fruit trees; good trees that produce good fruit and bad trees that produce bad fruit; you can tell a tree by its fruit. Having established the fact that bad fruit comes from a bad tree not from a good tree, Jesus then draws the connection between words spoken and one’s heart.

The scribes and Pharisees might think Jesus is insulting them when he calls them a brood of vipers, but again, Jesus is using a metaphor, specifically the viper, to almost scare them, that everyone listening will understand. They would know that the viper is the most dangerous and worst of the snakes in terms of looks, with double-forked tongues and venomous fangs that can inflict great harm. When they aggressively attack and bite its victim, the venom they inject often leads to a painful death.

In Matthew 5:20 ESV: “For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven,” Jesus is warning the crowds to be different than the scribes and Pharisees or they would never enter the kingdom of heaven; their righteousness must exceed that of the scribes and Pharisees.

In Matthew 6:2 ESV: “Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward,” Jesus is telling the crowds to not be hypocrites like the scribes and Pharisees.

In Matthew 3:7 ESV: “But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?”, we find John the Baptist using the phrase “You brood of vipers” in reference to Jewish leadership even before Jesus started his ministry.

Getting the attention of the scribes and Pharisees by referring them to a brood of vipers, Jesus then makes it clear that their words reflect evil hearts, ³⁴ “For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. ³⁵ The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil.”

These scribes and Pharisees are evil people because their words are evil, just like the tree that produces bad fruit is bad. These scribes and Pharisees have bad hearts and need new ones obtained through a radical conversion. Jesus then expands his audience to include the crowds by telling them to be careful what they say.

^{Mt 12:36} I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, ³⁷ for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”  

What is the meaning of the terms Jesus is using in these verses? What is the “day of judgment” and who are the people who will give account for every careless word they speak? What is the meaning of “justified” and “condemned” in this context? We will cover this in the next lesson.

Conclusion

If Jesus were to come to America today and address our politicians as a brood of vipers as he did the scribes and Pharisees, what kind of response do you think he would receive? Do you now better understand why these scribes and Pharisees had Jesus crucified? If we as believers didn’t live as the world does and lived more like Jesus did, we would also be persecuted as Jesus was.